The Self and Art

Today I got the opportunity to hear a wonderful man speak about the "self" and the topic of who we really are as people. It was based on the psychological idea of who we THINK we are, or should be. It really resonated with me as I have often been upset with any feeling of doubt, anger or sadness because I feel I SHOULD always be happy. and content. Oh, and perfect. Yeah, that's a laugh!
So, last week I took some time for myself and ventured outdoors to one of my favorite urban parks - Cathedral Park under the St. John's Bridge. It was warm and green and sun-drenched. Just what I needed. I grabbed a spot under some trees and got down to some serious thinking. It was a great day. And listening to the talk this morning brought it all back so vividly to me.


We ARE who we are right NOW. We need to enjoy that and not worry so much about the "shoulds" in our life, or "going it alone." And we need to honor our feelings we have in life; good and bad. I've often felt the need to be "perfect" at things or at least feel successful to a certain degree so that I would not feel like a failure or a waste. I'm really working on getting rid of these thoughts.

The humorous bit about this is that it really doesn't factor into my art making too much. Yes, I do have feelings of doubt and fear of acceptance. But when I am knee deep in art making, the joy is too much and the heart too full to worry about the future beyond the making. And that is what I love in seeing finished art (and probably why I am driven to make so much of it). It rekindles the joy I had in the making of it, and the joy it will hopefully spark in others.
Because, we all need to sit back, take a deep breath and ENJOY life a bit more. I may never have the perfectly kept garden, the solo art show at the Whitney, or even the completed to-do list...but I have a wonderful rich and full life! And I wouldn't want it any other way!

Dirty Little Art

I am fast and furious in my preparations for Portland Open Studios this October. I locked myself away in the studio a few days ago for some much needed wax time. I had several pieces in different stages of completion to tidy up. I thought about colors, pondered placement, concentrated on composition. And then I grabbed this little 4"x4" board, slathered on some wax, made some marks...and voila. One of my favorite things from the whole session. Completely unplanned, and - in my personal opinion - absolutely wonderful.

This is how it works SO MANY TIMES for myself. I have a piece I think and plan and sweat over, and then I throw something together at the end just to see where it goes, and that is ALWAYS my favorite. Maybe it is the freedom and the swagger with which I put those together. Maybe it's all hot air. What I do know is that I just had to share this little squirt of art with the world. Enjoy!

A Fine Balancing Act

Who am I kidding, writing those words in the title - A Fine Balancing Act? It is more an act of watching a lone clown try to keep seventy plates spinning amidst gasps from the crowd...that is what my life has been so far.

Thanks to the amazing little bundle of energy I call my daughter, I have days (and many many long nights) filled with her amazing laugh, cute crinkled nose, and furtive attempts at forward momentum. I enjoy these days with her, all the while making lists in the back of head for the times when I HAVE some "time" and can get to the rest of this adventure called "life". And I'm not talking about grocery shopping and gardening - I'm talking about an art career!

I've learned quite a few things in these 5 short months, and that is time is at a precious premium, and I must get out of it all I can, in the short spurts I do get. My fabulously supportive husband is downstairs while I get a few brief moments to update my Etsy store, send business email replies that I need, seek out a few inspirational moments online, and update this blog! Then, I will get to actually go down into the studio to work on finishing up some paintings for sales and then back to the "real world" of baby bedtime!

All the while, I have such a hard time saying "no" to other commitments - future shows, projects I want to work on for myself and others, classes I want to teach as well as take, all the while trying to maintain some semblance of balance and sanity. I don't know if I'm winning, losing, or just getting through it. I have some fabulous highs, and some horrendous lows...but I honestly wouldn't give it up for the world.

Of Babes and Boards

Yes, shameless self promotion of what I think is the world's cutest baby girl! So, I'm a little biased. I just had to break the art mood with something else wonderful that I created, with a lot of help from my hubby!

Hazel turns 5 months on Tuesday, and my what a fabulous little person she is becoming. She laughs and coos and is trying very hard to master the ability to crawl...which is really early at her age...but ever since she learned to roll over she has been furiously working towards forward movement. When she does figure it out...WATCH OUT WORLD!



This is one of those pics that I grabbed while spending copious hours on the floor playing with her. The blanket underneath her? That seems to be the only place on the floor she DOESN'T want to be!



And just so you thought I wasn't completely out of art bounds....here is another encaustic collage I created last week. I'm scanning in others I've finished up for Open Studios so I'll share those with you later. Have a great week!

Studio Sneak Peek

So, I never usually post pics of myself online. But I felt I had to in order to get the full effect of my newest LARGE cradled painting board. Yes, that's 48" of fabulous birch panel glory, soon to be painted and waxed upon. I made it myself along with the help of my fabulous father (who actually did all the cutting) and my mother who helped me glue and clamp. whoo hoo!



I am busy making art for Portland Open Studios Tour in October, but I figured I would share some images of my currently VERY messy studio so you can see what chaos looks like. You can also be impressed if you come to the studio tour and see it clean and tidy in person...knowing what it REALLY looks like! This is my wax workspace complete with wax-covered table and a myriad of tools. I also roll out my ink for printmaking on this table which is SUCH a pain since I have to scrape all the wax off first. fun fun.



I re-organized my wood area a bit...and voila! The wall of wood! All of the lumber I use for my art is reclaimed and recycled wood. I cut it myself (or bribe my father to do it for me) and I liked to have a variety of cuts, sizes and types of wood available to suit my fancy. It blame my wood fetish on my father...I can swoon over a piece of black walnut of the silvery tight grain of birch...aaah.


This is my wax palette...yes, I like the bright colors. I'm getting to the point where I should really have two palettes going at once, but my electrician wouldn't like that too much. I may have to upgrade to a larger palette soon!



And this last pic is of clean, virgin brushes waiting to be encased in sweet smelling beeswax. One of my favorite woodblock prints is behind them.

So, that's it for this part of the tour. I'm off to do some more work before baby Hazel awakes. Have a great weekend and stay crafty!

Inspirations from a Pearl of Creativity

This weekend was Portland's annual Art in the Pearl show....a must-see for myself each year. Someday I will be good enough and ballsy enough to apply...but for now I just go and enjoy.

I went down there with my uberhubby, Hazel the baby, and we met up with my artist pal Natasia Chan and her newborn baby, Franka. We walked the aisles and saw some familiar art, some new...all inspiring and unique. I discovered another encaustic artist that I love...Cheryl Toh. I also saw artsy friend and amazing gal about town, Judy Wise, who has been doing wonders with encaustic paintings and collages as well. Yum.

Basically, I was so inspired and fired up after the show, that I just HAD to go home and play in my studio as well. The piece shown here wasn't from that...but one I had just finished, but I still wanted to share with you!

I just got back from my parents' house (where my father has a woodworking shop) where I just finished building my largest braced frame ever for an encaustic I have done. It is 24" tall and 48" long and I can't WAIT to get started on it. It is going to be the signature piece for Portland Open Studios next month....which means, I better get crackin' on it! I will also have several 24"x24" pieces and others around that size too. I'm gonna be a busy gal!